


End of the Road

by Errorcode254



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Sburb Session, Alternate Universe - No Sgrub Session, Fluff, Ghost!Dave, Haunted Houses, Humanstuck, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-24
Updated: 2016-02-03
Packaged: 2018-05-15 22:07:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5802025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Errorcode254/pseuds/Errorcode254
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>ok. so this is like a continuation of End of the Street by Keatonfae. Read it because it was amazing. But basically, Karkat goes back to the house at the end of the street because he can't get the jerk out of his head. You know the jerk. The one that gave him a blank piece of paper instead of his phone number. </p><p>I hope it will get better.<br/>---<br/><i>Ok. So it's been about a week since you spent the night in that stupid house, and you'd be lying if you said you hadn't been keeping a not-so-subtle eye out for one Dave Strider around your school.</i></p><p> </p><p>  <i>Admittedly, you might keep coming back in the hopes that Mystery Dave is in the area. Even though you've pretty much worked out that if he would trick you into thinking that he'd given you his number, he probably doesn't want anything to do with you anyway. Man, it sure does suck being you.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sweetsyub](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetsyub/gifts).
  * Inspired by [End of the Street](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4948846) by [sweetsyub](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetsyub/pseuds/sweetsyub). 



> Keatonfae - I am so sorry. I ruined it, I know. But I have plans for more if that makes up for it? Probably not, but it means I can butcher your brilliant work for even longer. Sorry again.

Ok. So it's been about a week since you spent the night in that stupid house, and you'd be lying if you said you hadn't been keeping a not-so-subtle eye out for one Dave Strider around your school. You've been looking around corners, scoping out anyone that walks past you. It's not like he'd be easy to miss, with those stupid shades on his face. Which is why you've pretty much given up on finding him. 

Maybe he's avoiding you. After all, you were just some dumb guy that he had to keep entertained so that you didn't run out of a house with your tail tucked between your legs. Yep. You were definitely the type to leave a lasting impression. 

It's starting to get dark, and here you are, at the house at the end of the street. You've come back a few times over the last week, and the place isn't nearly as creepy to you any more. It's not like you're expecting to see him here, it's just some screwed up nostalgic thing that you can't let go of. This is where you met the weirdo that _didn't_ give you his number, then disappeared before you could offer him a ride home. 

You growl at yourself in frustration and run a hand through your hair, flicking one last look back at the house. You're about to turn around, head back home. You do live across town, and it's getting dark. The streetlights are starting to flicker on and you sigh, kicking your foot against the pavement. 

“Whatever.” 

A curtain rustles behind the window of the house. Great. Some new moron is up there, probably fulfilling a stupid dare given by immature friends with nothing better to do. You artfully ignore the fact that you were the moron just last week. 

You turn and head back in the direction you came, your hands stuffed in your pockets and your oversized turtle-neck pulled up over the bottom half of your face. Admittedly, you might keep coming back in the hopes that Mystery Dave is in the area. Even though you've pretty much worked out that if he would trick you into thinking that he'd given you his number, he probably doesn't want anything to do with you anyway. Man, it sure does suck being you. 

***

Your days are filled with the same boring classes as ever, and honestly, nothing about your life has changed since the house, except that you went on a truly awful date with Terezi. Seriously, you should probably thank Vriska for trying to keep you two apart. Well, not _everything_ stayed the same. It's been a month. A _month_. And you're still looking for the arrogant son of a bitch. You probably wouldn't even care this much if he'd actually given you his number and you'd realised that he was a jerk. Instead, you're kind of insulted? 

Yeah, insulted is a great way to put it. Unfortunately though, you can't seem to stop making your way to sit in front of the house. A couple of brave moments even saw you go back into the building. During the day, of course. There are perfectly good reasons that you prefer romcoms, and not liking ghosts is definitely one of them. Not that you saw any last time. But the idea has been pushed onto you for so long that you just can't shake the feeling that you're being watched. 

The sun sets faster now, being winter, and soon enough you're finding yourself standing in the glow of a streetlight, watching the dark house. The curtains move, and something catches the light and reflects back at you. You take a step closer and the curtains fall closed again. 

“Well, shit”, you whisper to yourself as you move to the cellar door again. 

You don't bother checking the front door, even though you left it open last time you were here. There are just some traditions you follow, ok? So, in the name of tradition (you also don't want to make a fool of yourself if the door is locked after all), you head down into the cellar, and honestly, it's still just as filthy as it was last time. Honestly though, you weren't expecting any different. What, was someone going to just let themselves in to clean up for you? You scoff at yourself and continue in the direction you took last time, finding the stairs pretty easily and refusing to look anywhere else, because seriously, ghosts are still a problem for you and you aren't gonna run the risk of setting any off. Because seriously. Dying while here on a bet is one thing. Coming back and dying for no fucking reason is not a thing that's found on your to do list. 

Fuck that noise. 

You climb the stairs slowly, you don't have your flashlight this time because you weren't exactly planning on entering this godforsaken house again, and you really don't wanna be found in the morning with a broken neck because you tripped and fell down the stairs. Let's just say that you're pretty damn relieved when you break out into the hallway and some of the light from outside breaks up the darkness of the house. Your heart is pounding in your throat as you make your way into the living room, and you half expect to run into him on the way in. 

_You are not disappointed when you don't see him_

You drop yourself down where you sat last time and pull out your phone. You need something to distract you from the fact that you're in this house and honestly why not open up pesterchum? Your mood always improves when you hassle John. You're in the process of clicking on his screen name when a sound forces you to lift your head. Your spine stiffens and your heart speeds up, and if you're being honest, you're preparing to meet your maker. 

_I'm dead I'm dead I'm dead_

You back yourself into the darkest corner you can find. 

_I'm dead I'm dead I'mdeadI'mdeadI'mdead_

The screen of your phone shuts off and you're pretty grateful that it has because it was a beacon that just shouted 'I'm here! Come and kill me'. 

You here the noises get closer and you can see a shape in the doorway. Your breathing stops and you're pretty sure that whoever it is can hear your heart beating like the loudest fucking drum in the history of drums. 

Your throat closes and you're about to attempt to make a run for it when the shape stumbles through the door, waving their hands in front of their face like a child with aspirations of becoming a ninja. You can't help but laugh when the guy stops and looks around like he's checking to make sure no one saw him. Which, naturally, alerts him to your position and his gaze falls directly on you (or, you think it does, because honestly, you can't make him out, and probably won't be able to until he steps a little further into the light filtering through the window). 

Shit. 

You probably shouldn't have laughed because now this person knows where you are and they're walking toward you. You let out a shaky breath and take a step out of the corner. Because if you're gonna die here, you might as well not be cowering in the fucking corner like a mouse. Time to grow a set and face the axe wielding maniac head on. Except that you hear him gasp, and you know that voice. Your head tilts slightly, as you try to get a better look at him, which would be easier if he wasn't still standing in the shadows. 

“Jesus, Karkat. I thought I was alone in here. Don't do that to me, man.”

Your eyes widen slightly. What are the fucking chances that you both choose tonight to come back? He steps forward and your suspicions are confirmed. There he is. Dave fucking Strider. And he's dressed exactly the same as he was last time. Which really means nothing to you, because it's been a month, and you kind of own like 3 sets of clothes that are identical. But it's nice to know that some things didn't change over the month. You've got a little sense of similarity, and it's kind of comforting.

“You never called me.” He continues, his face stayed impassive, but you got the feeling that he was disappointed that you hadn't called him. You'd almost call his voice sullen. 

“You never gave me your number, assmunch.” You probably could have been a little nicer about the way you said that, but seriously? He wants to act like you are in the wrong here, when he gave you a blank piece of paper and pretended he wanted to talk to you again? Ugh. 

You're actually sort of surprised at the look on his face. He's looking at you like you're insane. You glare at him and he just shrugs and holds his hand out wiggling his fingers.

“Pass me your phone, then.”

You do. You hand him your phone and you're not even sure why. Because do you really trust him to give you his number this time? He presses a few buttons on your cell and hands it back to you, still open to pesterchum, and you're surprised to see a new chum in your list, lit up and online. TurntechGodhead. You don't bother checking it there, because you don't really want to be disappointed again. At least, not where anyone can see you. You'll test it in the privacy of your own bedroom, naturally. He pulls out his phone and enters what you assume is your own pesterchum handle, because two seconds later your phone is making a noise, and his name is lit up. You nod, satisfied. 

He sits on the floor near you and you can't help but raise an eyebrow at him as you follow his lead. 

“So. Why are you back? Another bet with your brother?”

“What, a guy can't just go hanging out in haunted houses because he likes the peace and quiet?” He scoffs in your direction.

You roll your eyes at him, and you'd like to think that the smirk he gives you in return is a smile. He doesn't ask you why you came back, and honestly, you're pretty glad because how do you even begin to explain that shit? _Oh, you know. I just remembered the night we spent together and got all mushy and decided to brave death to come back in and re-live it_. Yeah. You're glad he doesn't ask. 

You and Dave end up talking for a while, much like last time. Really getting to know each other. Which is why you're really surprised when you're flinching away from the sunlight filtering through the window. When did it even become morning? When did you end up laying on the floor?  
You look around the room. 

Where the fuck did Dave go?

You groan and get up, brushing yourself off and wandering around the house. Dave is nowhere to be found, so you figure he must have woken up earlier and left without you. What an asshole. Grumbling, you let yourself out and make your way home. Showering is a definite thing that needs to happen.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pesterlogs fucking suck
> 
> Also, I'm kind of hc-ing that ghost!dave only comes out after sundown? Like, he's just not around or strong enough to communicate with the world of the living while the sun is up. 
> 
> I dunno man.

You settle in at your desk as soon as you finish using all the hot water in the house. Let's face it. Kankri wouldn't be happy if he had nothing to complain about. 

You're tempted to take a nap right now, but you're pretty sure your family has some sort of 'Karkat's being lazy' alarm that sends them up to bother you the moment it looks like you're not doing something that they'd consider constructive. 

Which is pretty much why you're doing your homework on a Saturday, while trying to keep yourself awake enough that the words don't swim over the page. Seriously. Sleeping on a cold, hard floor doesn't do much for helping you to feel rested. And it certainly doesn't help with your level of concentration. You're slouching (and _so_ not taking a power nap over your homework (drool? What drool?)) when Kankri lets himself into your room to drag you downstairs for lunch. 

You can't help but feel sorry for your family during lunch. You're tired and cranky and they're just worried about you. It's not a normal thing for you to just stay out all night. But holy fucksticks, they give you the third degree so hard that you're pretty sure you should be in the burn ward at hospital. 

..Yeah. Metaphors aren't your thing. Whatever. 

You manage to abscond pretty easily after lunch. The homework excuse gets you out of the forced socialisation. Not that you hate socialising, you just prefer to socialise on your own terms. Not because your family decides that you shouldn't be locked in your room. Ugh. 

It's 5pm when you finally finish your homework, and with the help of coffee throughout the day, you're feeling pretty human by the time the sun starts to set. You figure that probably means that you're overtired. But you'll take what you can get. 

You manage to hold conversation without yelling during dinner. Well.. without yelling _too_ loudly. No one can blame you though. Your parents are seriously overdoing this worried thing. To be clear: No, you're not on drugs. No, you don't have a girlfriend. Or boyfriend. Shut up, Kankri, Jesus. 

Honestly, you're just happy when you get the chance to slip away. 

You groan as your body hits the mattress and curl into the blankets on your bed before pulling out your phone to log into pesterchum. Normally, you'd use your laptop but right now, you're comfy and don't want to move. 

You click on the new chum in your list.

carcinoGeneticist [CG]  began pestering  turntechGodhead [TG] 

CG: HEY ASSHOLE   
CG: DID YOU FORGET ABOUT ME WHEN YOU JUST UP AND LEFT ME IN THE HAUNTED FUCKING HOUSE?   
CG: SERIOUSLY. THANKS A-FUCKING-LOT YOU ABSOLUTE DICKHOLE  
TG: woah man settle down   
TG: you cant expect a guy to just wake you up when youre lookin all comfy and shit down there  
TG: you were cuddled up to the strider and who was i to interrupt any dreams you could have been having about me  
TG: you growled at me when i moved and i dunno about you but getting my fingers bitten off isnt one of my kinks  
TG: i mean id totally be up for kink discovery with you but damn man   
TG: unless somethings changed in the last 5 minutes im pretty sure that buying me dinner is still a thing you have to do before you take a journey of kink experimentation with the stri  
CG: JESUS, WHAT? WHAT ARE YOU EVEN  
CG: NO THAT ISN'T EVEN WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT  
TG: are you sure man   
CG: FUCK. STOP.   
CG: MY POINT WAS THAT YOU JUST LEFT ME THERE  
CG: JUST LEFT ME ASLEEP AND DEFENSELESS  
CG: I COULD HAVE DIED  
TG: shit man  
TG: dont you think youre being a bit melodramatic  
TG: i mean youre cute and all  
TG: cuter than a bug in a rug  
TG: since when are bugs cute anyway  
TG: like did someone just see a bug one day and was just like  
TG: man that is the cutest thing i have ever seen  
TG: let me just put it in this rug oh my god its even cuter  
CG: WAS THERE A POINT TO THAT, STRIDER? FUCKING ASSNUGGET  
TG: jesus shouty calm down no need to bite my head off im getting to the point  
TG: my point was that i doubt anyone would sneak into a haunted house just to fuck with you  
TG: i mean you prob didnt even tell anyone you were gonna be there so no one would even bother breaking into the place for no reason  
TG: why were you even there anyway didn't get enough of it last time  
CG: WHY WERE YOU THERE?   
CG: YOU ALREADY SAID YOU WEREN'T THERE FOR ANOTHER BET. WHY WERE YOU THERE AGAIN IF YOU HAD NO REASON TO BE?  
TG: well duh  
TG: i was there to relive our night  
TG: whats that game called   
TG: 7 minutes in heaven   
TG: its like that except all night  
TG: it was heartbreaking when you didnt call me I was tearin my hair out wondering what i did wrong  
TG: and seriously man dont make me ruin the hair  
TG: i was all senpai notice me  
TG: and there you were doing whatever it is that karkats do in their natural habitats  
TG: what do karkats do in their spare time anyway  
TG: ...  
TG: karkat  
TG: seriously dude did you die  
TG: dude come back  
TG: if you still love me dont reply within 10 seconds  
TG: ha man i knew it  
TG: you just cant resist the strider  


carcinoGeneticist [CG]  has become an idle chum 

TG: alright man youre obvs busy   
TG: later   


You squint at the light filtering through your window and roll over to check the time. 8 am. You throw your arm over your face and groan into the crook of your elbow. Mornings should be blown up. 

SHIT!

You pat around on your bed frantically for your phone. You were in the middle of a conversation with Dave last night, and you're pretty sure you fell asleep right in the middle of it. After a good three minutes of searching for your stupid phone you give up, throwing yourself out of bed and shaking the blankets out. You sigh when you hear a loud thunk. 

Well, you found it at least. 

You nearly roll your eyes right out of your head when you read the great wall of red text that he's left you. Honestly, you're pretty sure he just likes the sound of his own voice. Or.. The look of his own text. However it works, anyway. 

You figure you should probably apologise for disappearing on him last night. 

carcinoGeneticist [CG]  started pestering  turntechGodhead [TG] 

CG: SORRY. I FELL ASLEEP. ALTHOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE I DIDN'T MISS MUCH.  
CG: AND JUST SO YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T JUST SAY “DON'T MESSAGE IF YOU AGREE WITH THIS” AND THEN TAKE MY NOT REPLYING AS AGREEMENT. THAT ISN'T A FAIR WAY TO DETERMINE SOMEONES STANCE ON AN ARGUMENT.   


turntechGodhead [TG] has become an idle chum   


You shrug and put your phone in your pocket.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M DOING

You spend the whole day checking your phone. Pesterchum hasn't made a sound all day and it's getting annoying. Seriously. You've reset your wifi twice, checked the sound on your phone once, logged out and in to pesterchum multiple times, and by now you've just accepted the fact that Dave hasn't replied to you. At all. Not a single time.  
Maybe he's mad. 

No, that's dumb. You can't help that you fell asleep after a shitty night the night before. Which was totally his fault anyway. He still hasn't even given you a straight answer about why he was there. You refuse to believe he was there for the same reason as you. Speaking of.. How fucking weird is it that you both chose _that_ night to go back into the house. 

You shrug it off because that is a train of thought that's better off derailed. 

Grabbing your phone, you head out onto your deck. You might as well watch the sunset while you wait for someone to talk to you. Not that you're waiting for anyone in particular. It'd just be nice if people continued their conversations instead of ignoring each other. Seriously. It's been _hours_. Even if he'd fallen asleep, he should have been awake by now. 

You give yourself a mental shake and look up at the sky. You're immensely glad that you finished your homework yesterday. You haven't been able to keep your control your thoughts today, and the last thing you need is detention because some asshole thought it would be a good idea to become obsessed with an obnoxious prick. Just to clarify, it's you. You're the asshole. Not that you're obsessed.. you're just annoyed with him and the whole situation. 

You blink up toward the sky, noting the streaks of pinks and purples that are painting the clouds. The last of the colours are gone from the sky and darkness has begun to set in when your phone finally alerts you to a pesterchum message. 

turntechGodhead [TG]  started pestering  carcinoGeneticist [CG]

TG: hey man  
TG: idk what happened there   
TG: mustve passed tf out  
TG: see you have this effect on me  
TG: you cuddle up to me one time and suddenly im swooning and staying up all night to talk to you  
TG: fallin asleep durin the day  
TG: i got you under my skin  
TG: my soul yearns for you   
CG: IM GONNA STOP YOU RIGHT THERE   
TG: oh cmon man  
TG: it was just getting good  
TG: i was about to confess my undying love for you  
CG: I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW YOU CAN CALL THAT “THE GOOD PART”  
CG: SERIOUSLY.   
CG: WE HAVEN'T EVEN GONE ON A DATE YET  
CG: I'M PRETTY SURE THAT COMES BEFORE ADMISSIONS OF LOVE.   
CG: AND I SHOULD KNOW. I AM THE KING OF ROMANCE  
TG: well shit man  
TG: your highness  
TG: if you wanted to go on a date so bad all you had to do was ask  
TG: lets do this man  
CG: WHAT? NO. I DIDN'T MEAN THAT  
CG: YOU ARE TWISTING MY WORDS, DICKMUNCH  
CG: THAT WAS NOT MY WAY OF ASKING YOU ON A DATE  
TG: too late man  
TG: you cant go back on it now  
TG: you'll break a ladys heart  
CG: SERIOUSLY, DAVE? COULD YOU STOP BEING A DICKHOLE FOR TWO MINUTES?  
CG: BECAUSE YOU'RE BEING A JERK RIGHT NOW  
TG: what man  
TG: you dont wanna go on a date with me then  
TG: cause i mean we dont have to  
TG: just thought it could be fun  
TG: go see a movie or something yknow  
TG: ill hold your hand  
CG: IF I GO OUT WITH YOU, WILL YOU STOP?  
CG: IF I SAY YES RIGHT NOW, WILL YOU STOP TALKING ABOUT IT?  
TG: im swooning  
TG: by the end of the night, youll be fallin for me so hard  
TG: youll have bruises  
TG: nurse strider will have to fix you up  
TG: ill even dress up for you  
CG: OH MY FUCK  
CG: IT'S OFF. THE DATE IS OFF.  
CG: YOU ARE INSUFFERABLE  
TG: no wait babe come back  
TG: i can change  
TG: im sorry  
CG: DO YOU EVER SHUT UP?  
TG: nah not really  
TG: hows friday night for you  
CG: FINE  
TG: sweet man cant wait  


turntechGodhead [TG] ceased pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG]  


You continue to stare at your phone for about five minutes after your conversation with Dave has ended, and no. You're not blushing. It's just cold outside and your cheeks are reacting to it. You almost hurl your phone at the wall when you realise what actually happened in the conversation. 

You agreed to a date. With Dave Strider.   
You're going on a date.   
_Holy shit._

You're never going to fall asleep tonight.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DATE NIGHT!!!
> 
> Completely fluff. I'm sorry.

Your name is Karkat Vantas and you're standing outside of that house again. 

You've been here so often that it doesn't even bother you any more. You have to admit though, you were a little surprised when he suggested you have your date here. It's romantic, sure, but still a little weird. 

You weren't sure if the place had electricity (it never occurred to you to actually check that the last times you were here) but if you had to take an educated guess, you'd put your money on 'No'. Which is why you're really glad that you have a friend like Sollux. The guy is a total nerd, but he happens to keep spare laptop batteries, just in case he's stuck somewhere and can't recharge. You might have managed to procure one from his collection for tonight. Who knows how long you and Dave will actually end up watching movies. When it comes to the cinematic masterpieces you've chosen, it's probably better to be prepared with the extra battery. 

Who in their right mind would want to _stop_ watching romcoms?

You head to the cellar door out of habit this time. The flashlight that you remembered is turned on quickly and you make your way up to what you've come to know as the living room. You got here earlier than you and Dave had decided, so you're able to turn the flashlight off when you leave the staircase. Darkness is starting to fall by the time you're finished setting up and you look around at your handiwork. 

Turns out there was no usable furniture to set up a makeshift couch, so you're pretty glad that you had the foresight to bring a couple of light blankets. One is laid out on the floor for you to sit on, while the other is dropped haphazardly on top to be pulled over your legs if you need it. Unfortunately, you didn't think to bring pillows or cushions. You've got bottles of water, and a couple of bottles of different types of soda because you forgot to ask about his flavours. You also have a collection of chocolate bars and candy. You would have brought popcorn, but it's not the same if it's not hot. Honestly, dates are fucking hard, and he is really lucky that you happen to be the king of all things romantic. 

You're in the process of setting up your laptop in front of the blankets when he appears next to you. You didn't hear him enter, and it sends a chill down your spine to realise that you were paying such close attention to what you were doing that you didn't even notice another presence until he whistled. Damn, if that had been some psycho, you could be dead right now. 

You wouldn't survive in a horror movie. 

“Damn, Karkat. I didn't think you'd go to this much effort for little old me. I hope you didn't do it all for a chance to get in my pants, because I gotta tell ya, I'm a fuckin' lady. I don't kiss on the first date. But y'know, if you wanted to get naked, well I mean, that'd be your choice. And who am I to get in the way of free will? Even God won't touch that with a ten foot pole, so hey. If you feel like lettin' your wild side out, I won't stop ya man. Just give me a little warning, yeah? Gotta get me a good seat for that show. Optimum viewing position. I'll have the best seat in the house. If you do a little dance, I might even be inclined to flash you a little ankle.”

You don't think your face has ever been this red in your life. 

“Oh my fuck. Seriously? You twist my words and practically force this date on me in the first place. Then you refuse to go to an actual place with me, talking about how _"won't it just be so much better if we keep up with tradition?”_ even though this place is creepy as fuck. Then when I actually try to make the place decent enough so that we won't die of pneumonia or the black plague, you make fun of me and say I'm trying to get into your pants. Why would I even _want_ to get in your pants in the first place? What makes you think I'm even interested in that? Jesus fuck, I should have expected this shit from you after the week of strangely sexual innuendos. Honestly, if this is an indication of how this night is gonna go, I'm just gonna fucking leave. I am so done with this already and we haven't even started the laptop.”

“Wait, no, stop.” 

You turn around and he's already sitting on the blanket you laid out and reaching for a bottle of cola. You're surprised. You took him for a raspberry fanta kind of guy. He pats the blanket beside him and you roll your eyes. 

“At least give me a chance to put the fucking movie on.”

He shrugs and you finish setting up the movie. You really hope you aren't interrupted during this, because you don't think you could stand morons bursting in on you in the middle of your date. Seriously. One moron is enough, thank you. You've got all the moron you can handle right here. You chuckle quietly under your breath and crawl onto the blanket beside him. It's a little awkward, and you honestly weren't expecting that. You're sitting close enough to touch each other, but you're both sort of stiff and apart. You put it down to this being your first date. You weren't this awkward with him during the other two nights. 

The first movie passes with Dave looking like he's completely unaffected by everything that happens, and you, glancing between him and the laptop, wondering what he's thinking and trying to relax. Seriously, you aren't even sure what the movie was about because you spent most of it worrying about how the date was going. 

It's about 10.30pm when you finally relax enough that you aren't paying attention to every little thing that Dave does. At least you assume that's the time. You're up to your second movie, anyway. You only notice that you've relaxed because about halfway through the movie, you reach for your drink at the same time that Dave reaches for the snacks. Which, naturally (because when did things ever go right for you?) ended with you wearing your drink. 

You're pretty sure you hear him mutter a “I knew I'd get you out of your clothes” come from the obnoxious asshole beside you as you pull off your sweater before it can soak through to your shirt. You're just thankful that your bottle was on it's way to your mouth when you got knocked, because otherwise, you wouldn't have the second blanket to replace the sweater you just took off. Small miracles. 

Your sweater gets tossed to the side and you pull the second blanket around your shoulders. You would feel guilty about that, but Dave wasn't using it anyway and you're _really_ cold now. 

That is, you _were_ cold. Dave must have noticed, because he lifts the blanket from one of your shoulders and scoots in so that he's half beside you and half behind you. His arms wrap around your middle and his head rests on your shoulder, and if you weren't warming up because of his shared body heat, your embarrassing love of this affection would definitely do the trick. Eventually you relax into his touch and find yourself leaning into him. You're pretty thankful that he either doesn't notice it, or at least doesn't make any more stupid comments. 

The pictures on the screen start to blur during the next movie, and the next thing you know the credits are rolling and you're laying across the length of the blanket, with the second one pulled over you. Dave is no where to be seen and you almost start to grumble about “stupid Dave, always fucking leaving you alone in this creepy-ass house every time you fall a-fucking-sleep” when he walks back in through the doorway. 

“Hey, Sleeping Beauty. You're awake. And I didn't even get to kiss you. Damn it. Here I was, takin' a piss when I could've been gettin' my smooch on. Just you wait, Vantas. Next time you better pucker up because the Strider wants kisses, and what I want, I usually get. I mean, sometimes it takes a little bribing or trickery, but I usually get my way in the end. And this is something you'll totally agree to, because kisses from me babe? They're one of a kind. You'll never want a kiss from another person ever again. You'll be won over and all it takes is for these sweet lips to touch yours just once. You'll be mine forever. Are you ready for that, Karkat?”

At some point during his speech he stopped moving and leaned up against the door frame and all you can think about is how, yes, you think you could totally be ready for that. Well, not right now, but yeah. Kissing Dave is totally a thing that you could like to do. He looks so at ease standing there, watching you with what you think is amusement in his eyes. Wait, when did he take his shades off? Whatever. It's not like you're going to let him know that he's right. That's a conversation you don't want to have right now. _'oh, yes Dave. I want to kiss you'_. Please. It's the first date. 

“Ugh. I just woke up. Can you leave your nonsensical ranting 'til after I get my bearings in this damn place? Why do you always act like a fuck weasel when things look like they might get cute? Jesus. Anyone would think you had a problem with intimacy. But with the way you cuddled up to me, we both know that isn't the issue. Maybe you just can't handle awkward post-cuddle conversations.” 

You're pretty much just talking out of your ass by the end of your rebuttal and you think he knows it too. You don't bother turning off your laptop properly, and just settle for closing the lid before you look at him again. 

“Would you just get your ass back over here? I'm cold.” Your eyes are closed when you feel the blanket beside you shift to accommodate him. You don't feel him cuddle against you, but his warmth is enough to push you back over the edge into sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> nopethefuckout.tumblr.com


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